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"Sovereign Threads: the History of Palestinian Embroidery" was on display recently at the Craft and Folk Art Museum

Sovereign Threads

An with Roxanne Varzi at
Pacific Arts Center
Introduced by Behzad Tabatabai.

Macedonian-Arabic Fusion
with Goran Alachki, Ljupco Manevski, Naser Musa
& Souhail Kaspar, Jan. 15

"The Arab/Muslim Revolution: the Middle East & the West"
a conference with Islamic scholar Reza Aslan and Middle East historian Mark LeVine
See Calendar, Jan. 12, 2006

Don't miss the next Sultans of Satire show on Thurs., Dec. 15, and read about the first one... Middle East Comic Relief, Thurs., Nov. 17, 8 pm. Click here.

Levantine Cultural Center cosponsored the 2005 Los Angeles Film Festival, which included several films with Middle Eastern themes or subjects.

Levantine Center recommends Sally Potter's YES

Levantine Center recommends LILA SAYS by Ziad Doueiri

Robin Soans' U.S. premiere of the play "The Arab-Israeli Cookbook" runs at the MET Theatre through June 26

May 20 (Friday) more than 30,000 people around the world and 10,000 in Israel/Palestine flew kites for peace.

Sholeh Wolpé, Nathalie Handal Reading, May 6

The Naser Musa-Adam del Monte Ensemble performed Arab-flamenco fusion on Dec. 19, 2004. Click here for info.

Iraqi-American Playwright and Actor Heather Raffo and Her One-Woman Show, "Nine Parts of Desire," Are the Talk of New York and Los Angeles

Live in L.A., Iraqi Quartet
Angam Al-Rafidain, the
Iraqi maqam/Chalgi Baghdadi Ensemble, Sun, Oct., 3, 7 p.m

Al-Andalus to Jerusalem:
Levantine Festival at the
John Anson Ford



Al-Andalus
with Tariq Banzi, Julie Banzi
and flamenco dancer Ana Montes

Click Here To Read
Three Articles on the Concert

Edward Said Memorial Page
Read His Last Essay

These workshops are designed for students and professionals who want to learn the basic daf rhythms and Persian vocal techniques, with a selection of folk and traditional songs. During June there will be four sessions, each class with 5-10 participants. Tuition is $120 per month. Each class ranges from one and a half to two hours, depending on the number of participants.

Read about the daf.

Participants must have their own daf. You should wear comfortable clothing. If you wish to record lessons, please bring your own recording device.

About the Teacher

Mamak Khadem is one of the pre-eminent Iranian vocalists in the United States. She came to prominence while performing with the indie group Axiom of Choice and recorded three albums with Axiom. Her haunting voice has been heard on numerous movie soundtracks (see her site for details).


Mamak is a bridge that connects geography to lore. In music, she is open to cultural influences but she has chosen the classical Persian style as her base. Inspired by works of master musicians in the 1980s, she seized every opportunity to further her vocal art, regularly traveling back to Iran to study with some of the finest Persian vocalists and masters. She benefited from classical Indian singing tradition at Ali Akbar Khan College of Music in northern California and from Bulgarian chore of Nevenka while exploring the traditional music of Greece, Turkey, and Armenia. Her new solo album is Jostojoo. Read a review of her recent concert.